Why Allergies Are So Bad Right Now: Painful Side-Effect

With allergy season in full bloom, Nuvora, an oral health care company bringing new drug delivery technologies to market, announced today a solution for dry mouth (xerostomia) a side effect caused by allergy and other medications, including those used to treat cancer, high blood pressure, depression, pain, diabetes and arthritis. For consumers taking these types of medications, chances are they probably also suffer from dry mouth—a condition where you don’t have enough saliva, or spit, to keep the mouth wet.

Research shows that an astounding 70-million Americans suffer from dry mouth and 75% of prescription drugs (approximately 1800 medications) cause it. Symptoms include difficulty swallowing/eating, difficulty speaking from dry vocal cords, soreness of the throat and mouth, parched mouth, and bad breath. Typical over-the-counter remedies for dry mouth—gum, candy, mouthwashes, and sprays — offer only short-lasting relief. Prescription drugs for dry mouth can have other undesirable side effects for many users.

“The duration of existing lozenge treatments is too short to be effective. For truly effective treatment of oral care issues and relief arising from dry mouth, you have to have the right ingredients and literally bathe the tissues in the mouth over a sustained period of time. Most oral care products remain in the mouth for only a very brief time and are then swallowed or spit out, ending up where they don’t really do much good,” said Nuvora Founder and CEO Jerry Gin.

Gin, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur who founded Nuvora, has, over the years, developed the home cholesterol test and a biodegradable drug delivery system for releasing drugs into the eye, and now has developed the first technology for the long-lasting treatment of dry mouth. Named Salese, the lozenge uses a patented Sustained Release drug delivery technology (SuRe) that provides continuous relief from dry mouth. The lozenges last significantly longer than typical treatments, offering hours of dry mouth relief by restoring a moist mouth feel, while treating the oral cavity with a controlled release of substantially lower therapeutic doses of natural active ingredients.

The patented technology uses a matrix of the active ingredients in the form of a lozenge or breath mint and holds it together with a cellulose polymer. All ingredients and polymer are edible. As one moves the lozenge around in the mouth, the surface layers of the matrix come off (dissolve), releasing the ingredients. This process continues until the lozenge has completely dissolved or the person decides to chew and eat the lozenge.

“When dry mouth happens, then there’s not enough saliva to wash away bacteria, and this can trigger bad breath and a cascade of oral health problems- cavities, gingivitis and periodontitis, on top of other health issues,” said Nuvora founder Jerry Gin. “These natural ingredients in Salese, in addition to offering relief for dry mouth, promote oral health by killing plaque bacteria with xylitol and essential oils, neutralize acids from bacteria that cause cavities, and freshen breath by using zinc to capture volatile sulfur compounds from bacteria that cause bad breath (halitosis).”

According to one dentist, Dr. Anthony Dailley at the Center for Breath Treatment, “The long-lasting properties in Salese are a real breakthrough for many of our patients suffering from xerostomia. Several report that it lasts for many hours, which is a big plus for them.”

More information on this latest innovation in the treatment of dry mouth can be found at www.nuvorainc.com